Improving your posture — and the look of abs

Develop your transversus abdominis

Charles Bush, Chicago Tribune

Charles Bush, Chicago Tribune

Karen Voight, Special to Tribune Newspapers

To achieve perfect posture, you'll need to develop your transversus abdominis, which lies beneath your other abdominal muscles and runs horizontally around your abdomen. When these muscles are strong, they will help to firm and flatten your midsection.

1Lie face up on a padded, level surface. Grasp one 5- to 8-pound dumbbell in each hand. Raise your right leg in a bent position over your right hip. Hold the dumbbell above your chest with bent arms, elbows pointed toward your knees.

2Inhale and straighten your right leg out to a 45-degree angle. Simultaneously, reach your arms behind your head, keeping the dumbbell off the floor, arms slightly bent. During this action, contract your abdominals by keeping your navel and rib cage pressing down into the floor. Exhale and bend your knee and arms back to the start position and repeat 12 times, then switch legs and repeat.

Voight is the creator of a line of fitness DVDs, including "Full Body Stretch" and "Ballet BodySculpt."